Breakfast, lunch, tea and afters.

Karaage Chicken and Jalapeño wraps

I went to a talk by Neil Boorman at the inspirational Affluenza exhibition. It was a great talk and I came away feeling super-sensitive to all the adverts I numbly absorb every day. Whereas Boorman’s Achilles heel was fashion, I am a massive sucker for food adverts. In particular, and at certain key moments of vulnerability I find myself unable to avoid those air brushed money shots of KFC, McDonalds and Burger King fodder. Don’t get me wrong, I only have a quarter pounder with cheese once a year if that, but I do find myself thinking about those action shots of slow motion bouncing juicy burgers and processed cheese (it has to be processed cheese) melting to golden perfection far far more than I should…

Anyway, I digress. So I was having one of these moments of weakness when I realised I had a bag of Karaage chicken stashed away in the back of my freezer. Karaage chicken is basically soy, ginger and garlic flavoured deep fried chicken. Not exactly diet food, but nowhere near as depressing as a “boneless banquet”. You can buy it from Japanese supermarkets or online from the Japan Centre and it’s nice to have a couple of pieces with some rice and salad in a bento box or with a very cold beer. I also had a jar of garlic mayonnaise. And some wraps. And some jalapeños….

(the following is not so much a recipe as it is an insight into the mind of a weak and confused glutton)

Ingredients

1 bag tortilla wraps

1/2 bag Karaage Chicken

vegetable oil for frying

garlic mayonnaise

HP Woodsmoke BBQ sauce

Jalapeño peppers in brine

Lettuce

Tomatoes

Smoked cheese/Processed cheese slices

Heat the oil and deep fry the chicken pieces. Drain on plenty of kitchen paper.

Combine the mayonnaise and bbq sauce and spread over the tortillas

Add lots of lettuce, chopped tomatoes and the peppers.

Add the warm chicken pieces and immediately add the cheese so it melts.